


Trouble in Paradise

by QueenPlatypus



Category: Open Heart (Visual Novels)
Genre: Anger, Clubbing, Conflict Resolution, Eavesdropping, F/M, Fights, Fluff, Gossip, Meddling, Workplace Relationship, ignoring
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-24
Updated: 2020-11-24
Packaged: 2021-03-09 23:22:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,644
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27694094
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/QueenPlatypus/pseuds/QueenPlatypus
Summary: Something happened between Hailey and Ethan that made them stop talking. Everyone is concerned, but no one exactly knows what to do to help them.
Relationships: Ethan Ramsey/Main Character (Open Heart)
Kudos: 20





	Trouble in Paradise

As it was usually the case, Dr. Baz Mirani came to work that morning in a good mood. Getting further inside the main building of Bloom Edenbrook hospital, he gladly greeted his colleagues, no matter if they were doctors or not. Seeing Ines and his twin come in together, he hugged them both, wishing them a good day as well, which earned himself a scowl coming from Zaid and a ‘you too!’ coming from Ines.

Short after, he reported to duty in the diagnostics team’s office.

“Good morning!” He said, jovially.

It didn’t take him long to notice that the general mood of the place was, in fact, not happy at all. Prior to him coming inside the office, his two teammates, Dr. Ethan Ramsey and Dr. Hailey Fisherman were on opposite sides of the room, their backs turned away from the other as they were both working on… something different, presumably.

As they started their usual briefing, Baz quickly figured out that something had happened between his two colleagues. The whole pitch was with the two of them not even interacting with the other, going through Baz if they had something to indirectly say to the other colleague, and making side-remarks along with some scowling. No need to say that the atmosphere was in no way enjoyable and Baz was feeling uncomfortable.

When Ethan dismissed the team, Baz was quick to leave the office, wanting to get as far as possible from the two feuding doctors. He didn’t know what was going on and why they were acting like that and frankly, the last thing he wanted was to get involved in it. He was already feeling like a wannabe-third wheel ever since June left for Mass Kenmore, he didn’t want to push it further.

“Dr. Mirani, is something bothering you?”

Looking up, he saw Harper Emery carrying some papers. With a shrug, he pointed towards the office he got out of.

“Trouble in paradise.”

“Ah.” She said, acknowledging what he was saying.

“Maybe it would be good to check up on him, at least.”

“Oh no, I’m _not_ doing this anymore.” She said with a chuckle.

The two doctors walked away, both getting started with their usual work.

***

“Dr. Emery, here are the test results from the patient in 332.”

“Thank you, Sarah.”

Harper took the papers from the nurse’s hands and scanned them before clicking her tongue and shaking her head. It seemed she would need to run other tests to figure out what was wrong with the patient she got. This slightly bothered her: being a surgeon first and foremost, she rarely got such cases anymore, her efforts being put somewhere else instead. This time though, she had no choice but to take it.

Heading to her patient’s room to pick up some other blood samples, she stopped upon hearing loudly hushed words. Curiosity getting the best of her, she walked towards the source of the sound to know what it was. In a short distance, she stopped, peaking to see Ethan and Hailey talking. Remembering what Baz had said to her a while ago, she nodded in understanding, but stood still as she tried to pick up on what they were saying.

“I can’t believe you…”

“You know why I did it!”

“I know why! That doesn’t mean I approve of it!”

“What, are you saying I need your approval to make my own decisions, now?”

“No! I’m saying…”

“I _know_ what you’re saying! And frankly, I’m so over it!”

“Are you… Hailey, what are you saying?”

The two of them paused. Hailey uncrossed her arms, realizing what she had just implied. Closing her eyes, she sighed.

“I’m not… saying.. _that_. But… If I’m being honest right now, Ethan… You showed me a side of yourself I wasn’t aware existed. And… I’m not sure I liked it. And I don’t know what to make of it.”

Harper frowned. Having herself dated Ethan a few years ago, she wasn’t quite sure what she was referring to. After all, she had known him for a long time now, even longer than the resident did. At this point, nothing new was able to surprise her whenever it came to Ethan Ramsey: even the fact he was dating Dr. Fisherman didn’t come as a surprise, when she first heard of it.

So… Did she know what she was talking about or not? That was the real question.

“Well… When you _know_ what to make of it… Come and find me.” He said, turning away.

“Wait, that’s it? You’re running away again? For Christ’s sake, Ethan!”

She groaned, clearly annoyed before turning on the opposite side and walking away from him. Harper sighed, but also got back to business. At least, she attempted to before she bumped into Dr. Lahela who was grinning widely.

“Eavesdropping, Dr. Emery?”

She rolled her eyes.

“Get back to work, Lahela.”

She started to walk away, but she stopped, turning to him.

“By the way, tell Fisherman to settle her personal life problems outside of here, please.”

***

When Hailey suggested they go clubbing after their shifts, Bryce didn’t think much of it at first. His incredibly short conversation with Harper Emery was now at the back of his head, pushed into a corner. So, when the suggestion was made, him along with their other friends agreed since it was something they did a few times every month.

All dressed for a night out, the gang went to a fairly crowded nightclub in the middle of Boston and checked some of their belongings in the coatcheck. Then, they picked up a booth and ordered a first round of shots to start the night properly. Each of them chose their glass, clinked them together before downing the content. Hailey was the first one to set it back on the table, whooping as she did so. Taking out her phone, she stared at the screen for a few other seconds before scowling and deciding to turn it off completely.

“Everything alright, Hails?” He asked her.

“Sure! I’m here with all of you! C’mon, let’s order some other drinks, I’m really thirsty!”

“Now you’re talking!” Praised Jackie before notifying the closest employee.

A few rounds of drinks later, the group started to get tipsy. Bryce could feel his cheeks getting slightly warmer than before and had an easier laugh. It didn’t take long for them to decide to head to the dancefloor, with the exception of Aurora and Elijah who wanted nothing to do with it. With Hailey, Sienna and Kyra poorly walking in front of them, Bryce, Jackie and Rafael couldn’t help but laugh, somehow not acknowledging their own clumsy way of walking.

On the dancefloor, they all started to dance together, with the boys sometimes making the girls twirl, which earned them their laughs. While dancing, they also screamed at the top of their lungs the lyrics of the songs they didn’t know. After a while, Rafael, Jackie and Kyra decided to head back to the booth. Bryce was now dancing with an unknown girl, but stopped upon seeing Sienna and Hailey stepping away. Apologizing to his new partner, he decided to follow them, keeping the distance so they couldn’t see him, but not too far so he could read their lips. He wasn’t really good at it, but he could still decipher some things.

“… text from Ramsey… not answering.”

Hailey rolled her eyes, clearly annoyed.

“… me alone. I just want to… doesn’t listen!”

“… he’s worried.”

“I don’t care… if… he apologizes… I’m having fun!”

She turned away, heading back towards the dancefloor and immediately started to dance. Sienna spotted Bryce and got next to him.

“What’s going on?”

“Ramsey and her are fighting. She didn’t want to talk about it and she doesn’t want to talk to him.”

Bryce nodded.

“Well… Reassure the man. I’ll keep an eye on her.”

“Thanks, Bryce.”

She headed back to the booth and Bryce got closer to Hailey, starting to dance right beside her.

***

The next morning, Sienna was aware of the fact that it was a day off for both Ethan and Hailey. Therefore, she decided it was the perfect moment to strike. First things first though, she had to set Mitch up.

“Okay, so, you’re good to go?”

“I believe so, yes. Thank you, Dr. Trinh.”

“You’re welcome. Now, if you excuse me, I have some other business to attend to.”

She didn’t wait longer before going towards Dr. Banerji’s office, in the administrative wing of the hospital. Getting in front of it, she saw the door was open, with the doctor writing something on a piece of paper. Still, she knocked on the doorframe, attracting his attention. He smiled.

“Ah, Dr. Trinh. Is there something I can do for you?”

“Actually… Not for me… It’s kind of a… personal matter?”

“Continue?”

“About… Dr. Ramsey and Hailey.”

He nodded in understanding and invited her in his office, telling her to close the door behind her. Sienna walked and sat down in the chair in front of his desk. When she knew she had his complete attention, she started to explain to him what she had for information. Not having much of it to begin with except the knowledge of the fight and the fact that they refused to talk to each other, she laid all of it down.

“I know it’s none of my business, but… I think they need a little push. They never fought at the point of not even trying to talk to the other. And… Since you and Dr. Ramsey are... well, you have good relations…”

“You can say we are close. That’s the truth. Just like you and Dr. Fisherman are close.”

“Well, she’s my roommate _and_ my best friend, it would be hard not to.” She explained with a laugh.

Naveen smiled.

“I have heard some rumors about this… conflict throughout the halls. Although, I didn’t believe it was that serious at first. They had disagreements before and they were always able to solve it.”

“I know, I agree! But… This time it seems different. As if they are not even trying to fix… whatever’s going on. And I think it would be a shame if… you know. Just because of this one setback.”

He nodded, bringing one hand up under his chin.

“I actually agree with that. Let’s do this. You talk to Hailey while I talk to Ethan. We figure out what’s wrong and we… give them a little push in the right direction.”

Sienna smiled, nodding vividly.

“Thank you so, so, so much, Dr. Banerji!”

“Everything for my… OTP, right?”

Sienna’s eyes widened, but burst out laughing, nodding to make him know he got it right. With that being said, she got out of his office and returned to work.

***

It was seven when Naveen was in front of Ethan’s door. Not waiting for an invite, and also because he was already so used to the place, he knocked, waiting for his protégé to open the door, which he did after a few seconds. Ethan’s eyes widened, but before he was able to say anything, Naveen spoke up.

“What’s going on?”

“Whatever do you…”

“Ethan.”

The younger doctor sighed, before opening the door wider to let his mentor in. He closed it and offered him something to drink, which Naveen declined before sitting on his couch. Ethan filled his glass before joining him.

“Dr. Trinh swung by my office today. Something about… a fight between Dr. Fisherman and you?”

Ethan groaned. Something about ‘those damn residents.” Naveen wanted to laugh at the thought: for once, it changed from the interns.

“I am not going to discuss my personal life with you…”

“May I remind you I already know pretty much everything there is to know about it?”

Ethan didn’t answer.

“Come on. Tell me.”

This time, Ethan downed his drink before setting his glass on the table in front of him, entwinning his fingers together.

“She wanted to officially introduce me to her family and accepted their invitation without asking me about it first. And from there… I got angry and… You know the rest. Now, we’re not really on speaking terms. She won’t even return my messages…” He sighed.

“Okay… And why did you get angry in the first place? You don’t want to meet her family?”

“That’s not it. Of course it has to happen at some point… But…”

He shook his head.

“I don’t think I’m ready for it yet.”

“But she knows your family.”

“Yes, because my dad kept coming to the hospital to see me and she ended up meeting him and as for my mom… That’s another story. None of it happened because I wanted to, nor did I plan it. It just… happened.”

“So? Now, it can be planned. Isn’t that better?”

“If I wasn’t her direct boss and ten years older than her? Sure.”

“Is that what is bothering you?”

“Me personally, no. But… What if this is not the case with her parents? What if, upon seeing me and learning who I am they think I’m using her? I’m… worried about what her family will think and I don’t want to… tarnish her image, if that makes sense.”

“It does.”

Naveen turns slightly to face him.

“And now, you’ll go tell her everything you just told me and fix this. If you come back to work tomorrow and I hear you and Hailey are still not on speaking terms. I’m suspending you.”

One of Ethan’s brow shot up.

“Can you even do that?”

“Do you really want to find out?”

“No, not really.

“In that case… You know what to do.”

***

Not even half an hour later, Ethan was standing in front of Hailey’s door. He stared at it for a while, taking deep breaths before, finally, knocking on it. He heard some shifting on the other side and soon enough, Aurora opened the door, not without a little surprise on her part.

“Dr. Ramsey? Huh… Good evening.”

“Good evening, Dr. Emery… Is Hailey home?”

“Huh… Yeah. Do you want to come in?”

“If you don’t mind.”

“Okay… Hails? You have a visitor!”

Ethan stepped inside, taking in his surroundings since the last time he actually stepped inside was only to do a direct beeline to her bedroom. Soon enough, though, he heard some familiar footsteps.

“Yes? Who is… Oh.”

She stopped in her tracks upon seeing him. Ethan used the occasion to take a better look at her. Her usual ponytail was looser than it often was and she was… Wait, was this one of his shirts?

“Hi.” He decided to say.

“Hey.” She replied, crossing her arms.

He gulped.

“Listen… Can we talk? Please.”

She stared at him, a hint of defiance in her stare before sighing.

“Let’s go in my room. And GUYS, NO EAVESDROPPING!” She said.

“Aw, boo!” Whined Elijah from a nearby bedroom.

Ethan shook his head, an amused smirk on his lips as he followed her in her bedroom. She closed her door and sat on her bed, glancing up at him.

“So? You wanted to talk? Then talk.”

“Okay… Huh… I guess I should start with… acknowledging the fact I might have overreacted?”

“That’s a good start. Go on…”

“But you can also recognize that you jumped into this decision without further…”

“Are you seriously going to put the blame on me again? Because if that’s what you’re here for, you can leave.”

“… No. I’m here to apologize and… explain myself. I would like to start with this part, if that’s okay with you.”

“Huh, sure.”

He pointed to the spot next to her, silently asking if he could sit. She nodded, letting him make his way to sit down.

“To put it simply… I apprehend meeting your parents.”

“Duh, who doesn’t?”

“No, listen… It goes way farther than simple first meeting jitters. Because… I’m aware of how much they mean to you and how highly they think of you and… I don’t want them to get disappointed in you choosing me.”

She frowned.

“What?”

He sighed.

“You know how I feel about you. That doesn’t change and, although I think this way of thinking is stupid and inaccurate in a way, I don’t think it will. But… Look at me. I might be… involved with you, I also am ten years older than you and I am your direct superior. And I can’t help but wondering that maybe… they’ll think I’m not sincere and that I…”

He stopped upon hearing her snort. As his eyes widened, she laughed more sincerely, holding her own stomach as he kept watching her with immense confusion. Ultimately, she calmed down.

“Wait… Really? Is that what this is about? Again?”

“Yes?”

“Oh, Ethan… You might be the best diagnostician of your generation, but sometimes you are incredibly clueless.”

“I’m sorry?”

She smiled, turning towards him.

“Must I remind you who has been behind me during all of my education?”

“I suppose your parents.”

“Correct. And, pray tell, who would most be likely to find out what I’m doing with my studies? Which includes my schoolwork, my research and… my readings.”

“You mean… They know who I am?”

“Yup.”

She sighed.

“They knew how much I was gushing about your research, always carrying one of your papers in my bag to class. At the time, it didn’t really have anything to do that it was your name on it, but your work just really resonated with me from the start, so at one point, they just knew that Dr. Ethan Ramsey was my favorite medical text author.”

“Oh… kay. But… Do they know what we are now?”

She nodded.

“At first, they shared your worries. They weren’t exactly sure of the whole mentor-mentee thing and so, we had looooooooong talks about it. But even then, their concern wasn’t towards you possibly using me. It was towards me possibly getting hurt if it went wrong.”

She took his hands.

“Listen, my parents know me. And usually, they trust my choices. I’m not the kind of girl to simply jump head first into something and I also make sure I’ve got everything before making a decision. This is also why, when we were in Miami and you wanted to stop… I didn’t insist. It takes, for me, way more than my personal feelings to do something. As for you… The fact that we both share them and want to give them a shot and hopefully get something better out of them is everything I need to be with you and have no doubt towards the future.”

She looks up to him.

“Why didn’t you tell me you were insecure?”

“I’m… not insecure. I was just… concerned.”

“That might be true, but that’s not all.”

She sighed.

“When we had our fight… You gave me the impression you were not interested in meeting my family. That you were not at all interested by my life outside of Boston… That you didn’t care at all.”

“That’s not true at all! I want to know everything about you! Everything that makes you _you_. And everything that helped shaping you into this amazing woman you are today.”

“Really? You… You’re not just saying that because you think I might want to hear it?”

“Of course not. Hails… I know this past year, upon meeting my parents, you could get the impression you know more about me than I know about you. But… This is not a competition. We have the rest of our lives to know each other in and out. And although you gained an unfair advantage with my dad trying to get me alone in Edenbrook and you stumbling on him… I still want to know your own background. As long as you want to share it with me.”

“Of course I do… I don’t want any secret between us. And most of all… I want this… What we have. I want it to work. And I’m sick of this stupid fight! I… I guess you got a point too. Maybe I should consult you too, next time.”

“And I should share with you what I feel more often… So… I guess I might be… a little insecure about meeting your parents?”

“Ah, I knew it!”

“Come on, this is serious. What if they don’t like me?”

“Well… They have no choice but to. And anyway… I love you too much for them not to like you.”

He smiled gently, starting to lean.

“I’m sorry for raising my voice and making you feel like I had no interest in your life… It’s false, I want to know you. I want to know about you. Because I love you.”

“And I’m sorry for… making decisions without taking in consideration how you might feel. I love you too and the last thing I want is to lose you.”

“You won’t.”

He closed the distance by pressing his lips on hers, sighing upon feeling them again for the first time in a while. She let go too, kissing him back and hooking her hands around his neck, pulling him down on her as their tongues danced together, both of them smiling against each other. When they parted, Ethan gazed into her eyes, smiling tenderly while caressing her cheek.

“By the way… Is that my shirt?”

“I missed you…” She pouted.

He chuckled.

“I missed you too. But… I’d like to see this shirt on the floor, if you don’t mind.”

“Hum… You know my roommates are nearby, right?”

“Is that a problem?”

“Not if it isn’t for you.”

“It isn’t.” He grinned.

“Well then… Why is it still on my body?”

He laughed, kissing her again before they both helped each other out of their clothes, finding themselves again in the other as their bodies expressed everything words couldn’t.


End file.
